Peppin

Peppin was a member of the Lost Tribe of Sith, a group of Human Sith who had settled on the planet Kesh during the Great Hyperspace War. She grew up on the continent of Keshtah Minor during the Hilts Restoration and participated in the Tribe's efforts to reach and conquer Alanciar, another continent in Kesh's southern hemisphere which the Tribe initially called "Keshtah Major." Following the accession of the reformist Grand Lord Varner Hilts, Peppin served as a staff on High Lord Edell Vrai's engineering team and learnt much about engineering. Edell had been designated by Varner Hilts as his chief engineer for the Tribe's project of developing a technology that would allow the Tribe to travel to and conquer "Keshtah Major".

After twenty-five years of failed experiments with long-distance uvak flights and building seagoing ships, Edell Vrai had invented the Tribe's airships after discovering that methane extracted from the volcano Sessal Spire could be converted into hydrogen to power the gasbags. These airships were also propelled by two uvak, winged reptilian beasts of burden. These uvak were harnessed to the airship through metal harnesses and there was sufficient room on board the airships for the beasts to rest, eat, and sleep when their services were not needed. In 2975 BBY, Peppin participated in the Tribe's expeditionary mission to Alanciar and served aboard the airship Candra. As the Candra's pilot and uvak wrangler, Peppin's job was to look after and guide these two uvak, which she nicknamed Starboard and Port.

During that expedition, she served as the Candra's combination uvak wrangler and pilot. She was part of a ten-person crew that included Captain Edell Vrai, the thoughtcrier Taymor, five warriors including Ulbrick and Janns, and two Keshiri ambassadors including Tellpah. Her captain Edell was also the commander of the Sith expedition and his plan was to conduct an overhead reconnaissance flight of Keshtah Major before returning across the Sea of Flames to the western coast of Keshtah Minor, the Tribe's homeland. For that mission, Pepppin served as Edell's lieutenant, making her his second-in-command. After several days of traveling across the Endless Sea, the Candra and her sisters ships Lillia and Dann Itra arrived at Garrow's Neck, one of the six peninsulas on the south-western coast of Alanciar. Garrow's Neck was part of a region known as the Six Claws.

Unknown to the Lost Tribe, "Keshtah Major" was home to a militaristic and highly developed Keshiri civilization who called themselves the Alanciari and their homeland Alanciar. In 4975 BBY, the Keshiri exile Adari Vaal and her surviving followers had fled to Alanciar. There, they succeeded in warning the Alanciari about the threat of the Sith in Keshtah. As a result, the Alanciari evolved into a militaristic civilization and had a large well-quipped and well-trained military that was designed to resist any invasion by the Sith. The Alanciari also ringed the Six Claws with a series of forts which served as advanced warning stations. In addition, the Alanciari also developed a complex network of semaphore signal stations and thoughtcriers that circulated news across the entire continent and were linked to a centralized command center in the capital city of Sus'mintri, which also housed the War Cabinet, Alanciar's military government.

Upon sighting Keshtah Major's coast, Peppin guided the uvak Starboard as they approached land. Port had already been fed and was ready to continue the journey. As they approached Garrow's Neck, the crew of the Candra began releasing limited amounts of gas from the gasbag to allow the ship to descend in order to conduct their reconnaissance probe. The Candra was also followed by her sisters ships Lillia and Dann Ira. Shortly later, the ship's thoughtcrier Taymor also projected a though through the Force telling the Tribe's leadership in the capital Tahv that they had reached Keshtah Major safely. Taymor also sensed that there was a lot of energy and emotions in the new continent, indicating that it was home to large population. Shortly later, the Lillia was hit by a flaming javelin fired from an Alanciari ballista at Point Vigilance.

The Sith crew initially thought that a lightning bolt had struck the Lillia and ignited its gasbag, wiping out the airship and its crew. The Candra's two uvak then panicked and Peppin had to quickly calm the animals down. Shortly later, two more javelins hit the Dann Itra, igniting its gasbag and destroying the entire airship. Edell and his Sith crew including Peppin quickly realized that they had come under attack from the Alanciari, who had used the Force to direct projectiles against the Sith airships. To escape the flaming javelins, Peppin and the other Sith crew began hurling provisions over the side of the airship in an attempt to establish some elevation between the airship and the ballistae below. Thus, the Candra was able to escape the range of the ballistae.

Taymor then attempted to project a message warning the Tribe that the Sith expedition had encountered trouble. However, she was killed before she could complete the message and the Tribe's thoughtcriers only received a garbled message containing only emotions of shock, surprise, and confusion. The Candra's crew quickly discovered that they were being attacked by the Alanciari "air force" which consisted of several uvaks and their riders who were armed with ballista which fired diamond projectiles. The Alanciari uvak-riders strafed the Candra and its crew with diamond projectiles, killing the uvak known as Starboard. Peppin also found that the Candra's gasbag had been punctured by the diamond projectiles, which caused hydrogen to escape and the airship to descend lower into the range of the ballistae.

Two of the Alanciari uvak converged on the Candra's port and starboard sides. In response, Captain Edell ordered the crew to use the Force to deflect the Alanciari projectiles. However, a third uvak rider dived headlong into the ship's gondola, causing the airship to shatter into pieces in midair. Four crew members were killed including a Sith warrior and one of the Keshiri ambassadors. Peppin and the other survivors including Edell managed to cling on to pieces of wreckage. The crew of the Candra landed near Point Defiance, an Alanciari fort and signal station on the peninsula of Garrow's Neck. Unseen, the Sith party had dropped north of Point Defiance while the balloon carried the wrecked gondola farther eastward. After traveling for a kilometer, the Sith crew climbed a stony tumbledown which led to Point Defiance.

Only six Sith including Peppin, her captain Edell Vrai, the two Sith Sabers Ulbrick and Janns, and the Keshiri scholar Tellpah survived the battle. Peppin and her Sith companions climbed the cliff but were quickly attacked by the Alanciari Wardmaster Quarra Thayn, who had armed herself with a ballista. She was protecting her lover signal officer Jogan Halder, who had been seriously wounded by the fallen uvak Starboard. Ulbrick was grievously wounded in his right thigh but Peppin and another Sith warrior named Janns succeeded in overpowering and disarming the Keshiri woman. While the Keshiri scholar Tellpah attended to the wounded Ulbrick, Captain Edell and lieutenant Peppin confronted Quarra, who revealed that she could speak the same language as the Sith Tribe. While Peppin had intended to cover the Keshiri woman's mouth with a cloth, Quarra made eye contact with Peppin and told her to release her. Edell quickly learnt from Thayn that she was Force-sensitive and that the Alanciari were prepared to repel any Sith invasion.

After breaking Quarra's mental defenses and learning her name, Edell decided to spare the life of her lover Jogan and ordered Peppin and her companions to take the prisoners inside Point Defiance. Shortly later, Edell executed the grievously wounded Ulbrick after determining that the young Sith Saber was unable to walk. The Sith did not want one of their own to become a prisoner of the Alanciari, an unknown enemy. Edell and the Keshiri scholar Tellpah then attempted to operate Point Defiance's semaphore machine but were unable to figure out how it worked. However, the two spotted a ship approaching the fort. This ship turned out to be the Alanciari fishing trawler Mischance. While most of the Alanciari harvester fleet usually worked in the coral banks of the Southern Passage, captains that were behind in harvesting their quotas of seafood were known to cut corners by fishing in the Western Sea, which was a restricted military zone that was patrolled by the Shore Guard, the Alanciari coast guard.

Edell decided that the six surviving Sith would hijack the harvester and then use it to return to Keshtah. The Sith also brought their two prisoners Quarra and Jogan with them. Prior to their evacuation from Point Defiance, Ulbrick's body was dumped into a cistern in an effort to hide it from Alanciari reinforcements who had been dispatched from Garrow's Neck. As planned, the Sith party managed use a boat to sail to the Mischance and seize control of the ship. During that brief but violent skirmish, all but one of the Keshiri sailors fought to the death. The following day, Peppin interrogated the last surviving crew member in the Mischance's wheelhouse but was unable to gain any information from him other than the fact that the ship had been trapping crustaceans and was due to sit in the Western Sea for a week before returning to port. By noontime, the Keshiri sailor had succumbed to his wounds without disclosing any information relating to his people's military defenses and government.

Following their violent "first contact" with the Alanciari, Peppin conversed with her captain Edell Vrai and noted the strong resistance they encountered from the local Alanciari including the fallen sailors and the captive Quarra Thayn. Jogan Halder was the only exception due to his broken ribs. Edell was satisfied that the Mischance was out of range of the Tribe's signal stations which meant that they would not be able to communicate with the hijacked vessel. Since the ship was also out of range from any Alanciari aerial patrols, Edell suggested remaining in their position for a while. Peppin disagreed and pointed out that the Mischance had several good maps of the Southern Passage's currents which she theorized would allow the Tribe to find a way to return home to Keshtah Minor via the smaller Sea of Flames. Due to her engineering skills, Edell believed that Peppin would be able to figure out how to steer the captured Alanciari vessel.

Due to the recent developments, Edell accepted Peppin's argument that it made sense for the six remaining Sith expedition survivors to return home as soon as possible. This would complete their designated mission. While the Mischance was a lowly harvesting vessel, it was considered to be advanced by the Tribe which had only managed to develop small river boats since Kesh's native timbers were unsuitable for building ocean-going vessels. Peppin read her commander's thoughts and suggested that the Mischance would make a good transport and could carry a maximum of two hundred Sith. In addition, The Sith also found that the vessel contained several good maps of the currents in the Southern Passage. Edell and his lieutenant Peppin ten decided to use the Mischance to return home to Keshtah and warn the Tribe of the military capabilities of the Alanciari. Both also reasoned that the Tribe would be interested in the sailing ship, Jogan Halder, and his collection of books which included the Keshtah Chronicles, a popular history on the Tribe which had been written by Adari Vaal for an Alanciari audience.

Unwilling to return to Kesh due to a nightmare, Edell decided to stay behind on Alanciar and claimed that he had received new orders to embark on a ground reconnaissance mission into Alanciar. He instructed Peppin to follow listen and follow his lead. Peppin complied with Edell and joined him when he presented the captive Quarra Thayn with the offer of serving as his guide on a ground reconnaissance mission into Alanciar's interior. Edell wanted to find out more about Alanciar's military government, the War Cabinet, in order to provide the Sith Tribe with more intelligence on Alanciar. Peppin also brought a map of Alanciar. Using Peppin's map, Edell told Quarra that the pair would infiltrate Alanciar through Meori Cove in Garrow's Neck, which was not under military surveillance. They would then travel to Alanciar's capital of Sus'mintri, which he estimated would take them several days to reach. Edell intended for this reconnaissance mission to last for a maximum of two weeks. Edell also lied to Quarra and claimed that the Mischance would remain off the coast of Garrow's Neck until they received a signal that he had returned. In reality, the Sith had already planned to return with the Mischance and the captive Jogan Halder to Keshtah.

Quarra was initially unwilling to cooperate until Edell threatened to kill her lover Jogan by throwing him into the ocean. Instead, she suggested that he use his own Keshiri slave Tellpah for that mission. However, Edell reiterated that he wanted a local guide who knew Alanciar. He also explained that the reason why he had brought Tellpah and the other Keshiri from Keshtah was to spread their religion, which was centered around the Sith "Protectors". Edell also wanted to learn more about the military capabilities of the Alanciari. Finally, Quarra agreed to assist Edell in return for them untying Jogan from the ship's and attending to his wounds. Edell agreed to Quarra's demands and ordered the other Peppin and Tellpah to untie Jogan. After depositing Edell and Quarra at Meori Cove, the Mischance returned to Keshtah with Peppin serving at his helm, in the absence of Captain Edell.

Under Peppin's leadership, the Mischance navigated through the Southern Passage and sailed into the Sea of Flames. After two weeks of traveling, the Mischance arrived on the western coast of Keshtah. After landing, Peppin flew ahead to the Sith capital of Tahv with a copy of the Keshtah Chronicles, which the Sith had obtained from Jogan's private library. This book was a popular history book which had been written by Adari Vaal following her exile and provided the Sith with invaluable intelligence on what the Alanciari knew about the Sith Tribe. After staging a grand deception operation in Tahv, Hilts and the other Sith High Lords managed to convince Jogan Halder that the Sith were not a threat to Alanciar but were rather the benign Protectors. As a result, the Alanciari submitted to Sith rule.

Peppin was a female Human Sith member of the Lost Tribe of Sith, who were descended from Human slaves of the Sith Empire who had become stranded on the planet Kesh during the Great Hyperspace War. Peppin had long red hair and was adept an adept uvak-wrangler. She also had a good knowledge of engineering and operating airships and sea-going ships due to her experiences training under the Tribe's chief engineer Edell Vrai. As a Sith, Peppin was Force-sensitive and was able to engage in unarmed physical combat. However, her skills as an interrogator were lacking and she ended up torturing a captured Alanciari sailor to death rather than gaining any useful information. Still, Peppin was a loyal and competent lieutenant whose skills with operating machinery enabled her to bring the captured Alanciari harvester Mischance and its crew safely back to Keshtah Minor. This marked the first transcontinental ocean voyage between Keshtah and Alanciar, which the Tribe later annexed following Edell's reconnaissance mission in 2975 BBY.

Peppin first appeared as a minor non-point-of-view character in John Jackson Miller's novella Lost Tribe of the Sith: Pandemonium, which was first released on July 24 2012 as part of the mass paperback Star Wars: Lost Tribe of the Sith: The Collected Stories. This marks her only known appearance in the Star Wars Expanded Universe.